the Queen's picture. The songs were clever for local poetry. They were
treasonous too, but then loyalty is the song of the well fed, well clad,
well-to-do citizen. Treason and wretchedness fit well together, in a
helpless, harmless way.

Your London correspondent of February 11th remarks, "Even Ireland has
nothing left but to settle down and attend to putting in the crops."
This is an English and comfortable view--the remark of a man who was not
there to see. It is far otherwise here in County Donegal. Evictions are
flying about as thick as "the leaves of the forest when autumn hath
flown." This wild second winter is the time selected for these
evictions. Every local paper has notices of evictions here and there.

They tell me that the reason of the great number of evictions at present
is to prevent the wretched tenants from having any benefit under the
promised Land Bill. If they are evicted now and readmitted as
caretakers, they can be sent off again at a week's notice and have no
claim under the Ulster custom for past improvements. I think any candid
person can see that these people are not in a position to pay back rent,
or even present rent at the high rate to which it is raised. In some
instances they are not able to pay any rent at all. There had been some
years of bad seasons ending in one of absolute famine.

The report of the Relief Committee for northern Donegal was published on
28th of October, 1880. I met with a member of that Committee, which was
composed of sixteen Protestants and eleven Catholics, including the
Catholic Bishop of Raphoe and the Presbyterian member of Parliament.
This gentleman informed me that food was given in such quantities as to
preserve life only. Seed was also given. Many people of respectable
standing, whose need was urgent, applied for relief secretly, not